Holidays With The Castles
by RoseTylerRun
Summary: Retitled from Thanksgiving with the Castles. Kate is invited to spend Thanksgiving with The Castles. What is in store for her? Caskett Pre-Romance. Spoilers for episodes through "Cuffed" Chapter Two: "Christmas with the Castles" is now up!
1. Chapter 1: Thanksgiving with the Castles

A/N: Hello all! So, as I am sure you all are aware of, today was Thanksgiving. This morning, I got this idea for a Thanksgiving Castle fanfic, and wrote it during breaks from cooking and spending time with family. This is my first non-episode-based Castle fanfic, however it does contain "Kill-Shot" spoilers. This is a Caskett pre-romance. I may or may not write more, but it won't be a continuous fic. Rather, this may become a story filled with one-shots set in the same 'verse. Anyway, I hope you enjoy. Happy Thanksgiving all!

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><p>It was the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. Kate Beckett was working on paperwork in the precinct. After the case she had just closed, she was thankful for the monotony working on paperwork brought.<p>

Her mind wandered back to her session with her therapist yesterday. She had told him she was ready to start trying to take down the walls inside which had defined who she was and kept others out since her mother's murder. She needed to work on redefining herself so she could let others in. _Let Castle in,_ a little voice in the back of her head added.

Speaking of whom, she felt his eyes burning into the side of her head. She paused from her paperwork "What Castle?"

"Oh nothing. I was just wondering what you were doing for Thanksgiving this year."

"I was planning on working, like I always do," Kate responded.

"On Thanksgiving? But, Beckett, that's a holiday"

"Murderers don't stop just because of the holidays, Castle," Kate responded dryly.

"I know that, but aren't you doing anything with your Dad?"

Kate felt a slight twinge of sadness hit her. Thanksgiving had been one of her mom's favorite holidays. She loved getting everything together for the family. Everything fixed was made from scratch. Her mom would stay up late the night before baking pies and in the morning would rise early to get the Thanksgiving feast prepared. Since her mother's murder, it had been too painful for either her or her dad to celebrate.

She finally responded to Castle's prompt, "We haven't celebrated since…" her voice trailed off.

Castle picked up on her meaning immediately and his eyes filled with understanding.

Beckett continued, "I have always worked, ever since I joined the force. It was better than staying at home."

"Well, I would like to propose an alternative."

"And what's that Castle?"

"Come over to my house for Thanksgiving." Not giving her a chance to interject, he rushed on, "It wouldn't be big. It would be just my mother, Alexis and I, and I know they would love to see you. We will have a turkey and a few sides, nothing too fancy. It would be fun." He finished and looked at Kate expectantly.

A part of her, still dependant on the walls, wanted to immediately make excuses. However, the larger part of her now wanted more. She wanted to be welcomed into Castle's family. She wanted the warmth family brought around the holidays. She wanted to belong and feel loved. Before she could think twice, she responded, "I would love to."

Castle looked pleased and somewhat surprised. "Great! We will be eating around 1:00, so any time before then you want to arrive would be great."

"Do I need to bring anything?"

"Just yourself."

"Okay, great, I will look forward to it. Now Castle, may I finish my paperwork?" She couldn't keep a smirk off her face as she said that last bit, letting him know full well that she would rather be making Thanksgiving plans with him than working on paperwork any day, but her job called.

"I will leave you to it then. I need to pick up Alexis from school. She has the rest of the week off."

Kate nodded, "See you tomorrow or Thursday Castle."

Kate continued with her paperwork, but this time she was filled with pleasant expectation of Thanksgiving.

The next day passed in a blur, and with no new murders for her team of detectives, Gates shooed them all home early. Surprisingly enough, Iron Gates evidently had a soft spot for Thanksgiving.

Soon enough, it was Thursday morning. Kate rose early, out of habit.

For awhile she paced around her apartment. She was restless. Usually she was at work by now. She wondered how early would be appropriate to show up. Finally around 10:00, she gave in and headed downstairs to drive over to Rick's place.

When she reached Rick's door, she felt butterflies form as she reached to knock. Before the butterflies could make her turn the other way and flee, she knocked. She heard delicate footsteps heading towards the door, as well as Castle's voice hollering "Is that Kate?"

Martha opened the door. "Detective Beckett, I am glad you're here. Come in, come in. Richard and Alexis are in the kitchen." Kate walked in. A wave of Thanksgiving feast scent hit her. "Smells delicious," she said as she shed her coat. Martha nodded and smiled, "They have been up since 6:00 baking pies and everything else. Here let me take that," she said reaching for Kate's coat and hanging it up. "Thanks, she responded and headed for the kitchen.

There were several different kinds of pie. Apple, Cherry, a cheesecake, and of course pumpkin pie were among the selections. Currently it looked as though Castle and Alexis were working on a green bean casserole though.

"This is what you call small?" Kate questioned with a smirk.

"We like pie," Castle responded.

Kate just rolled her eyes and asked if there was anything she could help with.

"Nope, just sit back and relax. Actually, Alexis, why don't you go help her pick out a movie?"

"Alright Dad. You sure you don't need any more help in here?"

"I think I am good. Thanks Pumpkin. I will be in in a few minutes to watch with you guys."

Kate followed Alexis into their sitting room.

"So Detective, what are you interested in?"

"Please Alexis, call me Kate."

"Alright Kate, what do you want to watch? We have pretty much everything from "You've Got Mail" to "Texas Chainsaw Massacre."

A section of DVD's on the shelf caught Kate's eye. "You have all the Harry Potter movies?"

Alexis nodded proudly. "They are one of my favorite series of books so it is only natural that I watched the movies as well."

"Why don't we watch one of those?" Kate suggested.

Alexis eagerly nodded and pulled out the first one.

Kate settled onto one side of the couch while Alexis settled into one of the arm chairs.

The opening credits had just finished rolling when Castle entered. "Oooh, is that Harry Potter I hear? Good choice Detective Beckett."

"Thanks. Who doesn't like wizards and magic?" she responded.

He settled onto the other end of the couch, leaving a decent amount of room between them. They watched as Harry grew up with the Dursleys, got his Hogwarts letters, went to Hogwarts, defeated the troll, discovered the mirror of Erised, and eventually defeated Voldemort for the first time in the series. Occasionally Rick would get up and check on the feast, but he would hurry back, not wanting to miss the 'good parts.' At some points, she noticed that Rick was watching her rather than the movie. She pretended not to notice and continued watching.

After the movie was over, Castle claimed that dinner was served. On the table she found stuffing, the green bean casserole he had been preparing when she arrived, the Turkey and several other dishes which had been prepared. Castle insisted that she had to try a bit of everything and she complied.

Conversation throughout the meal was light. They talked about Alexis's school, Martha's acting school, and some of the recent antics Ryan and Esposito had pulled. Eventually, Kate had emptied her plate and felt as though she couldn't eat another bite. Once Castle was assured that she indeed had enough to eat, and the others had finished Martha shooed them away so she could clean up.

Back in the living room, Castle had pulled out brightly colored box of what looked to be cards. She finally recognized it as a deck of Skip-bo cards. A smile grew across her face, "I haven't played that game in _years_." She exclaimed.

"Come join us then. We'll deal you in."

Castle dealt the cards, leaving Kate to play first. She felt a smirk cross her face as she looked at her hand and stock pile. Yup, definitely a good hand. It was a good couple of minutes before she could play no more cards and her stock pile was considerably shorter. Both Alexis and Rick looked amazed at her luck and she just smiled mysteriously at them. After that, her luck wasn't nearly so great, much to Rick's amusement. He didn't fail to tease her about it either. They continued playing and taunting each other until the game ended with Alexis as the winner, followed by both Kate and Rick with one card left in their stock piles apiece.

"So close!" both Kate and Rick exclaimed at the same time making eye contact as they did. They quickly averted their eyes from each other in embarrassment. Rick declared, changing the subject "And now it is time for pie!"

He took orders and soon returned with a slice of cherry pie for Kate, a slice of apple pie for Alexis and a slice of pumpkin pie for himself. He had none for Martha, as she had excused herself earlier to meet a couple of friends who didn't have family to join for Thanksgiving. Kate took a bite of her pie and bit back a moan of delight. "This is really good," she declared.

"Thank-you," Rick responded, "I would tell you the recipe, but then I would have to kill you."

"Don't want that. You wouldn't do well in prison Rick." She responded with a smile.

They ate their pie peacefully, each savoring the flavor. After finishing, Rick brought their plates to the kitchen and suggested they watch another movie. All three agreed to continue their Harry Potter marathon and put on The Chamber of Secrets. Taking their seats form earlier, they watched the movie.

After finishing the second movie, they decided to pop on the third movie and Rick went up to change the disk. When he came back he sat noticeably closer to Beckett, but still not touching. Kate found herself wanting to lean onto his shoulder but panic seized her, telling her to back away. What was she doing? Evidently, her tension showed because Rick leaned over and asked, "Everything alright?" Kate let out a breath. This was just Rick. She had told the therapist that she wanted to work to break down her walls, and he encouraged her to share more of herself with those she trusted, taking small steps to do so. She trusted Rick. It would be okay. She relaxed and scooted closer to him. She sensed him smile before wrapping his arm around her. She sighed. This felt right.

Around 9:00 Martha had come in only to excuse herself to go to bed.

They watched movies until it was close to midnight. Kate couldn't believe how quickly time had flown. Alexis had excused herself around 11:00, claiming she needed sleep. She was going out with a few friends to do Black Friday shopping and needed energy for the adventure.

That left Kate and Rick alone, snuggled up together. Rick murmured, "Stay Kate. Stay the night."

Kate's eyes widened as she looked up at him. "No, not like that, though if you wanted to, I would surely not complain. No, I meant stay in the guest room. It's late and you can drive home tomorrow. I am sure I have some PJ's around that should fit you."

Kate nodded, agreeing with his logic, "Thanks Rick"

"You've got it," he replied as he led her up to the guest room. He left her there for a few minutes and came back with a clean toothbrush and a pair of PJ pants and a T-shirt. He offered, "If there is anything else you need, let me know. I will be downstairs."

"Thanks Rick, for everything." She stood on her tip-toes and gave him a kiss on the cheek, which was slightly too long to be strictly platonic.

He looked deep into her eyes, his blue meeting her brown and responded, "Always."

Kate felt warmth fill her as he turned towards the door. "Goodnight Kate."

"Goodnight Rick."

Kate felt peaceful after the day. She knew that even a year ago, had she found herself staying over at Rick's loft overnight for no other reason than it was late, she would have panicked. Now, she was okay with it. She knew she wanted to move on with him. She just needed to take the baby steps to get there. Eventually, she was sure that she would be comfortable staying, not only in Rick's loft, but also in his bed. But for now, she was content to stay in his guest room after a wonderful day with a wonderful family.

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><p>Please Review? While we authors can write without people reviewing, we are human and do appreciate the comments. They encourage us. :)<p> 


	2. Chapter 2: Christmas with the Castles

A/N: Wow, I am actually writing a second chapter to a story. This is the result of an idea that came to me a couple of days ago. I figured that if Kate got Thanksgiving off, she would probably have to work Christmas. I could also see Castle coming in at this current state of their relationship. Hence, this chapter was born. Assuming I don't update again before Christmas, Merry Christmas to all of you. Also, thank-you to everyone who has reviewed/alerted/favorited this story. It means SO much to me as an author.

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><p>An obnoxious beeping filled the air. Kate Beckett blearily rolled over and turned off the alarm disturbing her from her slumber, 5:00am. It was Christmas Day and as she had taken Thanksgiving off, she had the misfortune of working today. Her dad had been disappointed that she wasn't able to come over; however, he understood that her work came first. She promised him that she would stop by the next day, exchange gifts and make it up to him. They never did anything huge, but Christmas was still a holiday that they spent together whenever possible.<p>

She rolled out of bed, quickly showered and grabbed a bite to eat before heading into the precinct. It was a ghost town today. Those who were able to took the day off. She went to prepare herself a cup of coffee. Currently, they didn't have an open case, but still had to be in the precinct in case a call came in about a body. She had told both Ryan and Esposito that she would call them if they had a body, but not to bother coming in. After all, there was no point in having all three of them there not doing anything. After getting her coffee, she sat down and began catching up on the seemingly never ending pile of paperwork.

A couple more detectives came in during the next couple of hours, though the precinct remained, for the most part, empty. Hence, she was surprised when she heard footsteps approaching her desk. Glancing up, her surprise deepened when she saw it was Castle carrying a cup of Starbucks.

"Merry Christmas Kate," he said as he handed the steaming cup to her.

"Castle, what are you doing here? Why aren't you with your family? It's Christmas." Kate felt warmth spread in her that he wanted to spend Christmas with her, even though she was working. He had asked her over a couple of weeks before. After their wonderful Thanksgiving together, he wanted to spend even more time with her outside the precinct. She had to decline though because she was working. She hadn't actually expected him to show up.

He sighed, "Alexis is spending Christmas with her mom this year and Mother is spending the day with a few people from her acting school volunteering at a soup kitchen. Hence, the loft is quite lonely today." He took a glance at her stack of paperwork, "I am guessing based on your current state of occupation we don't have a body."

"I'm sorry you don't get to spend Christmas with Alexis. Thanksgiving was great with her. It's hard spending holidays away from family. As to your question, nope, no body, it's been pretty quiet this morning."

As if sensing her last words, her phone rang. They had a body. After calling Ryan, and Esposito, they headed to the scene. The day was filled with checking and double checking leads until they eventually determined that it was a robbery gone bad and apprehended they guy. It was close to 8:00pm when they finally were able to leave the precinct.

Getting ready to leave, Kate filed the last of her paperwork and reached for her coat. Before she could get it on, Castle helped her into it. She smiled at him gratefully, touched by the gesture. Ever since they had spent those hours handcuffed together, and she subsequently dropped a not so subtle hint that she wouldn't mind voluntarily spending the night handcuffed to him, he had been finding more excuses to touch her and help her. In the past, she may have found these actions annoying, however, now, she found them quite endearing. She let him push the button to the elevator and open the door for her on the way out of the precinct.

The cold air hit them as they stepped out onto the sidewalk.

"So Rick," she started, "What are your plans for the rest of the evening?"

"I really have none," he replied honestly. "If I were to go back to the loft, the most I would probably do is catch the end of some Christmas specials on TV. How about yourself?"

"I have no plans either. Would you be interested in coming over?" Kate didn't admit it out loud, but she really didn't feel like spending the remainder of Christmas alone.

"I would love to," he responded his warm eyes meeting hers.

Rick flagged down a cab before she could insist they could walk. She was grateful though as it was quite cold outside. It dropped them off outside her apartment complex and they hurriedly entered the headed building.

Reaching her apartment, they shed their layers and Kate entered the kitchen, "Can I get you anything to drink. I have…" her voice trailed off as she searched the fridge and cabinets, "some possibly flat Coke, milk, coffee, wine and hot chocolate. Oh, and of course, water."

They opted for two glasses of wine and settled onto the couch in the living room. She looked over at him. "Thanks for coming in today Rick. I know you didn't have to and it made an otherwise miserable Christmas pretty fun."

He smiled at her, giving flight to butterflies in her stomach and responded, "Always."

They maintained eye contact for several moments before her cell ringing startled both of them. It was her dad, she determined, glancing at the caller ID. She picked up, "Hey Dad."

They talked for a few moments, wishing each other a Merry Christmas and determining when and where they would meet the next day.

After hanging up, she glanced over at Rick who was sitting there peacefully on the couch. He looked up at her and asked, "Do you usually spend Christmas with him if you're not working?"

She nodded, "Thanksgiving is too painful for him, but Christmas is manageable. We never do anything elaborate, but we try to get together and exchange gifts. As I was working this year, we had to postpone it for a day."

"I am sure he understands. He's your dad after all."

She nodded. "He does, I just wish he didn't have to spend today alone. One of the downsides of being a cop, murders don't stop just because of the holidays."

Castle nodded. "Oh, before I forget, I have your present."

"I have yours too, hold on." Kate ran into her room and grabbed a couple of boxes. Returning to the room, she saw Rick with a small box in his hands.

She sat down next to them and they exchanged boxes. He opened the first box she gave him. It was a photo taken on Thanksgiving from the beginning of their Skip-Bo game. Martha had taken it before heading off to meet with her friends. It was a great photo Kate was smirking as she attempted to ignore the expression on Castle's face as he attempted to distract her from her streak of luck. Alexis was grinning at their antics. All three were oblivious to Martha taking the picture. She had only known about it when Martha had emailed it to her a few days later.

"This is great Kate. Thank-you."

He reached to open the second box. Inside, was a pair of handcuffs, engraved with the word, "Writer."

He raised his eyebrow at them.

Blushing slightly, she explained, "You already have a vest, so I figured I would add a pair of handcuffs to the equation. Besides, I don't want your last memory of handcuffs to be associated with almost getting eaten by a ravenous tiger."

He smiled and said, "Thank-you Kate. These gifts are the best."

Kate smiled, "You're welcome Rick." She then turned to open her gift. Inside the box, she found a key engraved with the word "Always."

"Is this…?" her voice trailed off as she looked up at him for an explanation.

"It's a key to the loft. I want you to know that day or night, I will always be there for you when you need me. "

She felt a surge of warmth toward the wonderful man sitting next to her. He had just blasted out another chunk of that wall, and she couldn't find it within herself to care. "Thank-you so much Rick…so much. This means more to me than you can imagine."

"You're welcome Kate. I mean it. I'm here for you."

She leaned over and gave him a gentle kiss on the cheek. She felt him smile before she pulled away. Before she could get too far, he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her into his side. It felt just as right as it did at Thanksgiving. A part of her still protested that she was moving too quickly. However, most of her welcomed this as a step toward the inevitable.

They talked for several hours about everything and nothing before Kate felt herself drifting off to sleep wrapped in his warm embrace.

It was the next morning when she awoke. She noticed that she wasn't in her bed and somehow someone was below her. Opening her eyes, she saw Rick lying there sound asleep. Memories of the night before flooded her mind. Somewhere during the night, they had shifted so that he was stretched out on her couch and she was lying on top of him. That was the best she had slept in a long while though and it was thanks to him.

She glanced over at the clock and a slight surge of panic hit her. She needed to meet her dad in an hour. "Rick," she spoke.

He sleepily opened his eyes. "Morning Kate"

"It's 10:00, I've got to meet my dad in an hour!"

That got him moving. "Alexis' flight is supposed to arrive in an hour!"

He quickly gathered his things and gave her a quick peck on the cheek before heading back to his loft to change leaving Kate to scramble around and get ready herself.

She had a great time the night before, she reflected as she took the world's quickest shower and put on some coffee. She wasn't sure when they would get together officially; however, she knew it was a "when" rather than an "if" now. She eagerly awaited that day, especially if leading up to it, she was going to be able to have more moments like the night before. As she headed out to meet her dad, she couldn't help but wonder if next Christmas, she might be inviting her dad to the Castles' loft rather than going to meet him. It was a pleasant thought, definitely a pleasant thought.

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><p>So, thoughts? I would love to hear them!<p> 


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